"I still can't believe that you actually convinced me to do this..."

Mei Wu was not amused. She very much was not amused. At all. Ever since her new (and only) friend (she really needs to have more of these if they somehow left the Queen Bee's hive for certain with their bodies and lives intact) told her that she wanted to dual cultivate with her, which happened hours ago, and now it was night.

And well...

It was one of the most embarrassing, amusing, and irritating discussions she had with this stupid, ridiculous, and confusing alraune that was Kasumi Ai!

Embarrassing, because she got infodumped that dual cultivating is practically the cultivating equivalent to sex! And no, the fact that they don't need to insert a tab A into a slot B and only need to hold hands did not make it anymore embarrassing and awkward to even think of the sheer absurdity of the whole concept.

Amusing, because finally! Kasumi Ai was utterly, and hilariously embarrassed about it. The woman who didn't give a damn about being practically naked with only a bunch of vines covering her breasts and nipples all the time, and who has the occasional sexual humor, was now actually feeling so self-conscious and awkward about this subject! Mei Wu genuinely couldn't hide her enjoyment of that. Turns out that even this alraune who would have not blinked at the prospect of turning a human into a sex slave and an eternal energy source, has some shame regarding something sexual after all!

Even if that shame was caused by them being friends, because she was sure that this alraune wouldn't have given a damn if she decided to do that to Mei Wu the first time they met weeks ago.

And then, irritation was in the mix because of the sheer absurdity and the many questions and their answers, that she found herself thinking about because of the frankly baffling inconsistency!

For one; how the heck did she even know about that? No, seriously. Why does an alraune, who was only a little more than a month-old, even know about a practice that (mostly) humans use? Even Mei Wu did not even know about the practice until some filthy old man of the Xie clan brought her to have a "fun" time with her. And he was the only one who benefited from that, she only got a sore body. Though, it wasn't that hard since Kasumi Ai might have just gotten an epiphany during her cultivation or something,

Secondly, why is she not outright rejecting this? Surely she has more pride than that, right? Then, she remembered that actually, her hatred for most of the Xie clan members (except the servants and very few members) is so high that doing the equivalent of sex with an alraune would be far more pleasant. At least here, she would probably get stronger, which, as much as she doesn't like it, is very much necessary.

Thirdly, and she seriously doesn't want to think about it... but if Ai really wanted to do it, Mei Wu wouldn't really be able to refuse even if it was unnecessary. She didn't want to think that she would do whatever Ai wanted if the alraune really wanted her to, but this woman gave her so many benefits and help that the proud cultivator in the human woman was bluntly speaking that even dying to protect her won't be enough to repay this debt!

And no matter how Kasumi Ai was looking flustered, how much she was flailing her arms in embarrassment about the subject, and no matter how she was frantically making it clear that this was fully her choice and that if Mei Wu said "No" then she will not bother with it...

It was clear that Ai was, at the very least, highly curious about the stupid dual cultiation thing. She at least, wanted to try it with Mei Wu! Appealing to their need for power? Using such a simple and easy yet logical excuse? That was enough evidence that even this alraune did not know how much she wanted to do that practice. Whether that was her nature and instinct as an alraune was up to debate, but the conclusion was the same.

Both of them needed power. Her friend was really curious about dual cultivation, for some reason that is most likely instinct that she never really allowed to be released. Mei Wu herself would prefer this to being killed by being too weak, and this was one golden chance. And the whole thing made sense! At least on paper.

So, yeah, Mei Wu easily accepted the idea. Not that she liked it very much, but beggars can't be choosers. And they very much were, in this scenario.

"Ehehehe... sorry." she ignored the awkwardness emanating from the alraune and how her face was blushing with a hint of remorse that was dwarfed by curiosity.

"One night. Only one night. If it doesn't work, then we just train normally until we find a better method." Mei Wu demanded, even if she very much doubted that they would find the 'better method' while under the rule of the Queen Bee.

If it worked though... well, they will cross that bridge then.

"Okay! I- I guess we would start now?"

Mei Wu's answer to that hesitant yet interested question was to jump and daintly allowing her body to sit right next to Kasumi Ai's upper body, her legs crossed as the petals around Ai's humanoid upper body expanded just slightly to make it comfortable to her as the human sat with no sound or causing any strain on the delicate petals.

Being a cultivator came with one hell of a skill regarding how one can control their balance and make it so that they barely weight anything against most surfaces they stand on. She might be weaker than Ai and many others, but she was still far more skilled than any mortal human.

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

And now, with practically no distance between them, the two looked at each other in the eyes, and there was a fleeting idea in the pink-haired woman's mind that due to them being on the same height, Mei Wu actually looked taller as she had to look down to meet Kasumi Ai's green eyes as they were filled with uncertainty. The sight of the alraune's human face looking so uncertain and shy almost looked cute and adorable.

If they were not trying almost painfully to keep going instead of just ending the attempt before it even began, Mei Wu knew that she would have tried to get some payback at all the teasing the alraune that now looked like a young maiden usually inflicted on her.

Mei Wu felt her own heart beating fast as embarrassment and shame were being desperately ignored, both from her and the alraune that for the first time seemed almost afraid even with her face as red as a tomato.

It was almost terrifying to feel the qi of nature seemingly twisting and entwining on itself, as if it was afraid of embracing Mei Wu's own Qi. But both knew that it would happen.

"I'm ready as much as I can be, Ai'er... and you too are the same."

"Yes... Yes, I am too, Wu-chan..."

There were no more words as they held their hands together, as if they would have danced had this been any other situation, their grips tightening. It was almost a miracle their hands were not shaking non-stop from the heightened emotions they felt.

Neither needed any sensory skills to feel just how embarrassed and anxious the other felt. It was as clear as day.

Mei Wu could almost hear the frantic heartbeats of the green-haired woman in front of her, and she found herself taking a long and deep breath to calm herself, an action copied by her friend, looking at each other one more time.

No more hesitation now, or so both understood just by their eyes making contact.

And then, at the same time, their bodies began to glow as their eyes closed and Qi gently flared, telling their minds to just do it. No need to think about trying to dual cultivate. The would just dual cultivate. They would think about all this drama later.

And the world seemed to vanish to both of them. There was no need to care about anything but each other right now.

Slowly, Qi started to flow from one to another. It was only a few drops of Qi exchanged between each other, but it felt like nothing either had felt.

'It burns. Yet it's warm. Powerful yet pure.' Mei Wu thought to herself, feeling like her body was on fire, yet it felt so soft and tender. And for the first time, she was feeling something strangely sweet.

Even as her physical body had never moved an inch, her mind was consumed by a sensation even purer than even her senses could ever feel.

The Qi of nature, gently entering her body, slowly reached her inner world, that mass of gray that she so wanted to change. Green air, pulsing with life and understanding, reflecting the emotions that Ai was trying to convey, carefully spreading around, leaving a trail of heat and comfort that would have made her body squirm if she was any less focused.

It almost felt unbearably yet comfortably hot, something she couldn't even imagine was possible. She felt how gentle Ai was trying to be, only giving as equally as Mei Wu tried to give, and understanding it, she gave more of her own colorless Qi, and the Qi of nature increased accordingly.

At that, a strange yet instinctually normal feeling of being looked at while naked made itself known. Dual cultivation; it was the same act of exposing one's soul to the other. Under that rule, she couldn't stop but feel embarrassed even further, as she felt as if even her inner self was exposed to the very penetrating gaze of these emerald eyes.

Embarrassed, practically hot and bothered from the heat moving inside her body, and having her own soul gazed at, she couldn't help but to squirm inwardly even as she could feel these very same emotions, as the astral body of the alraune was almost visible to where Mei Wu looked, barely hidden by the dense Qi of Nature.

It's scary... she found herself thinking in her mind, as the sensation of being seen increased. Her inner world pulsed as she felt as it was gently covered by the nature Qi.

It's exposing...

She saw as her world was not being overwritten by the pure essence of nature, instead, the black and white spots in it, embodying her desire to become the Apoptosis of those who harmed her -and her friend- were growing larger due to the pure Nature Qi, as they started to paint the ugly gray world in black and white instead.

'How can it feel so unbearable yet comfortable?' she felt as Ai's intent pulsed even further in accordance to her colorless Qi being painted, and Mei Wu could almost see the world of Nature as it was connected to her own.

'It's... pretty.' the thought seemed to echo all around her, as even with all the embarrassment, the shame, the heat, and the feeling of being exposed, she wanted more.

More of that warm emerald light. She wanted to embrace and bathe in it, and she wanted Ai to do the same to her.

There was no need for words, as the emerald flames of Nature seemed to pulse, according to her desire, the figure of Kasumi Ai almost visible and clear. Now, she only needs to cross that distance.

"Are you sure, Wu-chan?" there was no hesitance in that question that was practically shouted, their spirits no longer needing to talk when they can just make their intent into words in this realm. There was no doubt. No uncertainty could be felt in Kasumi Ai's soul.

Even here, they both were trying to step on their own shame and continue forward. In this moment, against that willpower that was practically pulsating, there would be no place to run away, nor is that acceptable for either one's desires and ego.

"Who do you think I am here for, Ai'er? I'm not allowing you to look at my literal naked and exposed soul just for me to be cowardly at this point!"

There was no more need for even articulating their thoughts. Both understood what the other wanted, and so they gladly and proudly crossed the lines they saw in front of them.

An explosion of heat and Qi consumed them both, as light so intense mixing green, black and white into a sea so deep and pure, appeared for only a couple of seconds to them.

And they saw each other's spirits unhidden as the words failed to describe the awe and sheer depth of the connection they had just made.

Naked, vibrant, mystified. They just kept looking at each other. No shame, lust, embarrassment, or vulnerability. These feelings had no right to exist as far as they were concerned, as they gazed at each other.

No care in Kasumi Ai's eyes about how Mei Wu was looking adorable and sensual as her world behind her was still being painted over black and white.

No care in Mei Wu's eyes about how or why Ai looked older and sexier than she was in reality as the ever-expanding forest and blue sky laid behind her.

At this moment, they only saw each other and a single word was the only thing they could ever think in that very instant. No care about hiding one's emotions, as the words left their mouths.

"Dazzling... That's right... Dazzling."

With eyes full of appreciation and love...

"Ai'er..."

"Wu-chan..."

Their Qi and inner worlds pulsed together.

"You're the most dazzling and beautiful person I've ever seen."